A long shadow loomed over her.
“…….”
The corridor was dark, lit only by torches sporadically placed on the walls. Valentin’s yellow eyes were distinctly bright in the darkness. At that moment, a chilling shiver ran down her spine.
Can human eyes look like that?
Her instincts whispered. This is a beast beyond your control; run away.
Adel jerked her arm to break free and hastily stepped back, but Valentin closed the distance just as quickly.
“……Do, don’t come… please…….”
It was a tense standoff. They repeated this several times. To an observer, it might have looked ludicrous. However, when Adel’s back hit the wall, she felt a terrifying fear. He had been cornering her from the start.
Like a beast hunting its prey…
She had no more space to retreat. Adel resignedly turned her head.
“……Huh.”
Her heart pounded rapidly, as if she had been running at full speed, and she gasped for breath. Suddenly, the taunting words of her half-sister, Charlotte, came to mind vividly.
‘In Bichelreben, there’s a monster from ancient times that mimics human speech.’
‘…….’
‘Don’t take it lightly; remember this well. I worry that you, being utterly incompetent, might not be able to distinguish between a monster and a human, tarnishing your own honor.’
The shadow that mimics human speech. The dragon of Bichelreben. All the doubts she had just managed to suppress flooded back in an instant. It might have been ludicrous, but Adel had no mind to laugh at herself.
“…….”
As he slowly extended his arm, blocking her last escape route, Adel was completely engulfed in his shadow, overwhelmed by intense fear.
“Ah….”
She leaned against the wall behind her, panting. Her mind screamed that she should push him away and flee.
But her body wouldn’t obey. The fear that turning her back would expose her neck to his sharp fangs froze her in place.
At that moment, Valentin reached out towards Adel’s neck. He lightly grasped her rapidly pulsing throat with his right hand. Adel, startled, let out a short moan.
“Huh.”
Contrary to what she expected, there was no force in Valentin’s hand. It was an extremely cautious touch, like encircling a fragile bird.
Warmth radiated from his large hand. The pulsating beat of his pulse throbbed against his firm palm, and Adel gradually calmed down.
Their gazes met.
Ridiculously, even in this moment, Valentin was beautiful. He tilted his head slightly, as if imploring for affection.
“Adel. Speak, spe… speak.”
“…….”
“Just, a little… continue…”
He gazed at her lips with yearning, almost obsessively rummaging through them. Adel realized what he wanted only after Valentin parted her lips and repeatedly brushed his fingers over them.
It seemed he thought that her usual sweet voice would emerge if he parted her lips.
“Hmm? Adel.”
When Adel showed no intention of opening her mouth, Valentin began to plead. Adel struggled to swallow the saliva accumulating in her mouth. She barely managed to utter a few words through her trembling lips.
“I don’t, don’t understand what Your Highness wants from me. Why you’re… repeating my words, I’m too obtuse to comprehend….”
Her voice, gasping and stuttering, sounded much worse than usual. Yet, Valentin smiled brightly as if he liked even that.
“Your… High… ness… what, do you, want from… me?”
He narrowed his eyes and repeated her words, almost as if he was appreciating music or art.
His hand around her throat tensely increased its pressure, seemingly wanting to feel the vibration of her throat more closely. With his fingertips, he felt her breath interwoven between her sentences, oblivious to the terror it invoked in her.
“Why… repeat, my… words, I don’t, understand….”
He paused for a moment and stared at Adel. His gaze slowly traveled from her face to her neck, to her heaving chest, and her trembling hands. Only then did he seem to realize Adel’s state.
Their eyes met again, just before Adel shut hers. The last thing she saw was a puzzled Valentin tilting his head.
“…….”
He loosened his grip on her. He seemed perplexed, gently touching his lips, then stepped back a few paces from her.
“Don’t… know. Words… said well.”
“…….”
“Apologies… for, the, offense.”
After uttering words that were either an apology or something else, he hurriedly crossed the corridor and disappeared. Left alone, Adel’s strength drained from her body, and she slowly collapsed to the floor.
‘What on earth is happening?’
She was utterly bewildered, unable to gather her thoughts. Was it because of the strange stories she heard from Greta? The simple act of mimicking speech and behavior had instilled a momentary, intense fear in her.
Adel suddenly remembered the necklace around her neck. The symbol of Morrig, which was supposed to shatter upon the approach of anything malicious, was intact without a single crack.
‘This being intact means one of two things.’
Either Duke Ansagar is undoubtedly human, or he’s a powerful monster that can even ignore the divine power of Morrig…
The latter was unheard of. Yet, if Valentin had indeed been a monster hiding within the castle, there was only one thing left to do.
It was time to write to Father Padre.
Cold Male Lead Became My Clingy Husband (Female-Dominant)
Feng Bai Su transmigrated into a matriarchal novel, becoming the sister of the female protagonist and the Seventh Princess of the Feng Ling Kingdom.
After working herself to death in her previous life, finally reincarnating as a princess, she only wanted to be a lazy fish who could eat, sleep, and play.
Until she met the male protagonist from the book, Wei Jing Mo, and he took a liking to her!
Wei Jing Mo is the top young man in Feng Ling City, talented in both appearance and ability, from a prestigious family, with a cold and otherworldly appearance, a figure like the bright moon in the hearts of noble ladies. It was thought that only the most powerful and talented noble lady in Feng Ling City would be worthy of such a brilliant young man. Who knew that this young gentleman would secretly admire the infamous Seventh Princess?
Short scene 1:
Feng Bai Su looked at the young man crying like a pear blossom in the rain before her, and couldn’t help but doubt her life.
Wasn’t the male lead described as a cold and otherworldly figure in the book?
Then who was this poor little thing crying with swollen red eyes and tear-stained face?
Short scene 2:
Wei Jing Mo stared intently at Feng Bai Su who was about to go out, wanting to say, “Be careful on the road.”
Before he could speak, Feng Bai Su suddenly bent down and bit his cheek.
Her peach blossom eyes were full of disdain: “Tsk! You’re so clingy!”
Wei Jing Mo: “…”
A talented fox spirit female lead with a flirtatious appearance but actually abstinent VS A cold-looking but actually naive and clingy little jealous male lead
